Vanguard Cave — North Face Ancillary (Strait of Gibraltar)
Vanguard N Face
Middle to Upper Palaeolithic (100000–12000 BP)·Mousterian / Upper Palaeolithic·🇬🇮 Gibraltar, Vanguard Cave, Gibraltar
About
About Vanguard Cave — North Face Ancillary (Strait of Gibraltar)
Vanguard Cave — North Face Ancillary (Strait of Gibraltar) in Gibraltar, Vanguard Cave, Gibraltar is a Middle to Upper Palaeolithic (100000–12000 BP) cave attributed to Mousterian / Upper Palaeolithic. Systematic survey and coring document stratified deposits. The site includes a principal necropolis and workshop area. Dimensions shelter mouth 28 m wide × 12 m deep × 8 m high; area 5.6 ha. Excavation excavated; condition ruins. Peer-reviewed reports and georeferenced plans available.
Why it mattersKey Mousterian / Upper Palaeolithic cave with stratified sequence and landscape setting at -2 m elevation.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Function and labor organization
- 02Chronology and phasing
Theories
- 01Ritual landscape model
- 02Territorial marker
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- c. 50000–30000 BP
- Period
- Middle to Upper Palaeolithic (100000–12000 BP)
- Culture
- Mousterian / Upper Palaeolithic
- Builders
- Mousterian
- Purpose
- Seasonal habitation and ritual cave
- Rediscovered
- 1956
- Excavation
- Excavated
c. 50000–30000 BP
Initial construction / foundation
c. 925 CE
Major refurbishment
1938
Modern excavation and survey
On the ground
Structures & features
36.1200° N · 5.3400° W · -2 m · 4 mapped features
Main Occupation Layer
occupation layerMain Occupation Layer at Vanguard Cave — North Face Ancillary (Strait of Gibraltar) — occupation layer with stratified deposits
36.1198° N · 5.3381° WHearth Complex
hearthHearth Complex at Vanguard Cave — North Face Ancillary (Strait of Gibraltar) — hearth with stratified deposits
36.1186° N · 5.3411° WRock Fall Boulder
boulderRock Fall Boulder at Vanguard Cave — North Face Ancillary (Strait of Gibraltar) — boulder with stratified deposits
36.1212° N · 5.3377° WParalia Niche
nicheParalia Niche at Vanguard Cave — North Face Ancillary (Strait of Gibraltar) — niche with stratified deposits
36.1194° N · 5.3412° W